


The Batqueen Rises

by Assassino



Category: Persona 5, Persona Series
Genre: Batman AU, Day 2, Dreaming, F/M, Movie: The Dark Knight (2008), ShuMako Week 2020, Shumako week
Language: English
Status: Completed
Published: 2020-01-14
Updated: 2020-01-14
Packaged: 2021-02-27 07:53:34
Rating: Mature
Warnings: Creator Chose Not To Use Archive Warnings
Chapters: 1
Words: 6,368
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/22253704
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/Assassino/pseuds/Assassino
Summary: During a long movie night spent with the Phantom Thieves, the night ends with Ryuji suggesting to watch an American movie on a bat themed vigilante battling against/with over the top, maniacal villains and rogues. Makoto spends the night with Ren and dreams about herself as The Batqueen, a masked vigilante who battles against criminals in the dead of night.A story written for Day 2 of Shumako Week 2020!
Relationships: Amamiya Ren/Niijima Makoto, Kurusu Akira/Niijima Makoto, Niijima Makoto/Persona 5 Protagonist
Comments: 9
Kudos: 16
Collections: ShuMako Week 2020





	The Batqueen Rises

Checking the time on her phone, Makoto noticed just how fast the hours had passed. The piles of empty plastic bags and other snacks had flooded the booth table in front of her. Ryuji and Ann had the idea of having a movie night at Leblanc, where everyone would spend the entire day just relaxing and watching movies. Since Makoto didn’t have anything planned for the weekend, she thought it was a great idea to spend time with her friends and Ren. Within eight hours of movie night, the festivities seem to be slowly losing steam.

Ryuji and Futaba continued to engorge themselves with an enormous bag of chips. Makoto was impressed by their ability to eat so much. She imagined their stomachs were bottomless pits or black holes. Futaba was insistent on calling it her “TARDIS stomach,” which didn’t make much sense to Makoto. Morgana sat above Ryuji and Futaba on the top of the booth seats, occasionally telling Ryuji that he’ll get fat if he eats any more chips. Ren sat next to her and would sometimes find himself leaning on Makoto’s shoulder, his sleep deprivation slowly taking its toll. Yusuke and Haru would be off to the side, discussing the movies in detail while Futaba would be setting up the next one in the queue. Haru seemed to quite enjoy the slasher film that Futaba recommended everyone to watch. But Makoto did not like the jumpscares in the slightest, jumping at the slightest break in silence during the movie. 

“Okay! We got one more left! This one was recommended by Ryuji so you can blame him if it sucks.” Futaba pulled out a small flash drive with a little, plastic flower on it. 

“Aww, that’s such a cute little flash drive Futaba!” Ann peered over Futaba’s shoulder to look at her computer screen.

“It’s not mine. Ryuji gave it to me.”

“Wow, I didn’t know you were that kind of guy Ryuji.” Ann proudly wore a mischievous smirk, looking at Ryuji who quickly swallowed a handful of potato chips.

“Shut up! And it’s not mine! It’s my mom’s. She gets me movies for free because she’s in some club thing. I dunno.”

“You’re always a mama’s boy, Ryuji.” Morgana spat out from above.

“You shut up too, you stupid cat!”

Ann spotted the movie’s title when Futaba opened the menu screen, “Oh! I’ve watched this one before! It’s in English though. Bet you wish you paid more attention in English now Ryuji, huh?” 

“Hell no! My mom made sure this had the dub in Japanese.”

Makoto leaned over to see Futaba’s laptop, seeing a menu screen with the title in big letters called _The Dark Knight_. The background showed a man in an all black suit, wearing a cowl with small little ears on them. A symbol resembling a bat was burned onto the side of a large building. The overall aesthetic of the movie had Makoto intrigued, reminding her of some of the Yakuza movies she’s watched. 

Futaba hit play and everyone began to settle in while the beginning of the movie started. Resting on Makoto's shoulders, Ren fell asleep entirely as the credits for the movie studios played. Futaba and Ryuji found another bag of chips to munch on. Yusuke crossed his arms and had his eyes laser focused on the TV screen, as if he was ready to take notes. 

The opening segment was all Makoto needed to be completely hooked into the movie. The reveal of the psychotic clown villain made her wonder how this masked vigilante would be able to catch him. Haru clearly enjoyed the action of the movie, giggling even at some of the very brutal scenes. Makoto had the same feeling of anticipation and excitement she got when she watched movies similar to _Like a Dragon_. The way that Batman fought against brutes and battled against criminals. The game of maniacal chess that he was playing with the Joker enthralled her. She had the urge to swing her fists a few times to minic Batman’s punches and jabs. 

It wasn’t until the middle of the movie where Makoto noticed Haru look over at her thrill over the action and giggle a couple of times. She wasn’t sure if Haru was giggling at her silliness or over the fact that Ren started to snuggle Makoto a little bit in his sleep. Either way, Makoto felt her cheeks warm up furiously and darted her eyes back to the movie.

Once the movie ended, everyone except Morgana, who went upstairs to get some sleep, started to clean up. Even Ren woke up to clean up, saying that he loved the movie about the “human bat.” All Makoto could do was roll her eyes at her loveable dork. Before everyone was finished, Makoto pulled Ryuji aside.

“What’s up Makoto?”

“I wanted to ask if there were any other movies like that one we just watched. Is there a sequel? Maybe even a spin off would be sufficient enough. I could probably stay up for a little while longer watching a series if there is one. Oh! Maybe-”

“Woah! Slow down Makoto! I got you.” Ryuji reached into his pocket and pulled out the flower memory stick from before, “There’s a sequel that you can watch on here. Just give it back to me when you can!”

Makoto moved at lightning fast speed and snatched the flash drive from Ryuji’s hand, “Are you sure?”

“Course! It’s no problem at all! But I gotta go now.” Ryuji stretched his arms high in the air and yawned, “I’m getting sleepy. Night!”

Ryuji rushed out while the others packed up and went back home. Ren was swaying his head a little bit, visibly ready to pass out again. He tried his best to smirk but only gave a half one.“You know, you would make a cute bat.” 

Makoto put her hands on her hips and rolled her eyes again, a motion she always found herself doing with him way too much. “Get up, you big sleepy head. It’s time to sleep,” Makoto pulled Ren up from the booth seat by his arms.

“I will this time, but only because getting up means sleeping with you.” His head continued to bobble side to side, almost like he was ready to collapse on the wooden floor of the cafe. Makoto couldn’t help but think Ren’s drowsiness was adorable. The boy seemed to always overwork himself, constantly helping his friends with anything they needed. Whether Takemi needed help at the clinic, Iwai needing an extra pair of hands, or Boss requiring some help during a busy day. Ren was always there to help and Makoto loved his devotion to help those around him.

“I don’t remember what the movie was about... I was too busy dreaming about you.” Makoto smiled, her face reddened as she put Ren’s arm around her shoulder. Ren always found some of the sappiest and flirtiest things to say to her, as if his main goal in life was to make her look like a tomato. Deep down though, she loved the teasing. Although it constantly made her feel embarrassed, she felt like a normal human being who was loved. As odd as that sounds. After so long being with just herself and her sister, it was nice to have a boyfriend who was overjoyed at the chance to tease her. Makoto loved her sister and was happy with how she changed after the events of her palace last year, but Ren gave her a chance to confide in someone else. Someone she was comfortable with about anything.

“Did the movie have dogs? Don’t tell Morgana but I love dogs.” Ren, the dork that he, also says some of the weirdest things sometimes. But it is one of the many things that she loves about him.

After practically carrying him up the steps and making sure not to wake up Morgana, Makoto laid Ren and herself in bed. She made sure that Ren was comfortably laid down, moving up the blanket a bit more to his shoulders so that he was warm. Makoto fluffed up his pillow as well so his neck wouldn’t ache in the morning. Afterwards, she pulled out her laptop and earphones, plugging them and Ryuji’s flash drive in.

Makoto appreciated that Ryuji’s mom was very organized and ordered all the movies by franchise. The movie she was looking for was under a folder named “Batman,” where there were various other movies that Makoto would have to watch later. Clicking on the file _The Dark Knight Rises,_ Makoto was once again immersed in the movie with the introduction of the villain through an action packed airplane scene. This movie seemed to be much more fight oriented, to which Makoto really enjoyed. The story of this vigilante being beaten down and having to climb himself out of the hole he found himself in order to save his city was one of the things that Makoto greatly admired about this hero. But before she could finish the movie, Makoto’s eyelids grew heavy and started to yawn more often. Her mind struggled to focus on the laptop screen, until she slowly leaned back and fell asleep as soon as her head hit the pillow. 

\-------------------------------------------

The bright white light of the entire room strained her eyes upon entering it, each panel of ceiling being a square of harsh rays. The mechanism in the room recognized that she had entered so it opened a small section of the floor to her left. Up came the batsuit, placed firmly on a mannequin where other gadgets and weapons were hung from bars that stretched upward from the base of the room. Upon her headband were buttons that responded to mechanisms of this room. Pressing one of the buttons, a computer display emerged from the floor, like the one on her suit currently hung on. On the computer, she decided to initialize a program she had written. The program ran through every database and camera in Tokyo, showing them all on a screen in a millisecond while it searched the depths of this city’s serverspace. All for one objective. To catch the Joker.

A familiar voice called from behind her, “Master Niijima, your tea.”

“You can place it next to the computer, Sadayo.”

Sadayo Kawakami had taken care of Makoto ever since her parents were both murdered when she was young. Taking Makoto and her sister under her wing must have been difficult, yet her maid never seemed to complain and seemed to take joy in treating them like daughters. Kawakami was like the mom that Makoto Niijima was robbed of at a young age. 

The maid put down the chrome plate bearing the teapot and cup, peering to the side to briefly watch the computer screen shuffle through pictures and passages of text at lightning speed. “Still searching for her?”

Makoto continued to tinker with one of the gauntlets of her suit, “The Joker is still somewhere in Tokyo. We need to find her before any more destruction is caused.”

“Well, please do be careful in your next encounter with her.” Kawakami carefully poured some tea into her cup, “I know I can’t convince you to stop what you’ll do, but I do ask that you value your own life. I know how you fight… and because of that, you might end up far worse than just getting hurt.”

Makoto snatched the cup and drank a tiny sip. She looked at the emblem on her armored suit. The bat symbol that seemed to become unanimous with the terror of the night. Back to the computer screen, wherein thousands of people’s faces were shown, people that Makoto needed to protect… at all costs. “Thank you for the tea, Sadayo.”

Kawakami let out an exasperated sigh, “It is my pleasure, Makoto. Your sister is also here to see you.”

“Let her know she can come in.”

Makoto listened to Kawakami retreat from the brightly lit room, hearing the faint clicks of heels on the floor. She did not turn out to face her sister, focused on the myriad of images.

“It’s important to take breaks. Even I know when to relax from time to time.”

“I relax and the criminals would get away.”

After a few moments of heel clicks, Makoto saw Sae snatch the gauntlet from her hand and start to work on it. When Makoto began her crusade against justice, she had nothing but her fists and a mask. However, after Sae Niijima found out about her sister’s endeavors, she provided her with some of the best equipment that money could obtain. State of the art armor and gadgetry that Sae had personal experience crafting. While Sae did not approve of her actions and mainly focused on running Niijima Industries, she decided it was best for Makoto to be prepared if nothing can stop her from beating criminals to a pulp.

“Relax and maybe you’ll actually be able to fix these in less than an hour,” Sae pulled out a tool from her pocket that was the size of a toothpick. She used it to tinker with the gauntlet, sparks occasionally flying to the side.

In an instant, the computer screen froze one image. A notorious criminal that Makoto had been trying to catch for as long as the Joker has run rampant. Sae, curious to what stopped the incessant scrolling and beeping, looked at the ghastly image of a man in a white suit and what seemed to be a plague doctor’s mask on his face. “Scarecrow? He’s finally resurfaced?”

“How long until you can fix my suit?”

“25 minutes. 15 if you promise to break his arms for me.”

\-------------------------------------------

The night eclipsed the entire city of Tokyo, wherein millions of lights from the buildings and people were shown on the ground level. The cape of her suit freely followed the winds of the high altitude, like that of a waving black flag. Makoto patiently waited for any kind of indication that her scanners would pick up a hint of Scarecrow or his fear gas. However, she felt something was off. It was a feeling that gnawed her gut - a feeling synonymous to danger. 

Makoto pushed herself into the air in a backward motion, landing and grabbing the unknown assailant by the neck with her arm. With a hard slam onto the wall behind her, she knew there were only very few people who could sneak up on her. 

Black skin tight suit, white mask, lethal whip at his side, some of the messiest black hair she’s ever seen. “I always knew you liked it rough, Bats.” Dangerous, yes. Dangerously annoying.

“I wanted to ask what you are doing, Phantom Cat.”

“Can’t I just come to see you? You don’t always get the chance to enjoy a romantic view of Tokyo like this.”

She held him against the wall with her arm pressing deeply into his neck. Makoto stared at Phantom Cat, who returned her a devilish smirk and wink. She didn’t even need to ask if he was enjoying this. After letting go, Makoto returned to her post on the edge of the skyscraper.

Phantom Cat crossed his arms and walked behind Makoto, “As diligent as always. Aren’t you, Batqueen?”

“Scarecrow is planning something. I need to know what.” 

“And as always, you need to go in to save the day.”

Makoto dismissed Cat’s jab at her and continued to scan the city’s skyline. She awaited for any sign of disorder or chaos in the city. From above, Makoto could see Shibuya Crossing. 

Hundreds of people crossing the streets and dispersing in every direction. Cars passed through the streets, flowing up and down the river streams of Tokyo. Gigantic TV screens that flicked with advertisements and news station reports. The city was in a temporary peace, Makoto knew this.

Suddenly, Makoto heard a faint scream. She looked closely to find people shrieking as they ran away from the source of the incident - a green gas. Makoto inferred it must have been some kind of toxin. From her view, the toxin travelled like a wave, making ripples through the sea of people. People ran for their lives, screamed, stood paralyzed in shock. But there was no explosion. No mercenaries with guns. No supernatural being. Just a man. A man with a plague doctor’s mask, standing in front of hundreds of people who were terrified. 

Batqueen tapped the side of her cowl, where the edges that exposed her mouth closed to form a gas mask. 

“And what about me?”

Makoto pulled out a piece of technology from her belt, which with the press of a button expanded into a similar looking gas mask as hers. She tossed it to Phantom Cat. With a swift sleight of hand, Makoto pulled out a high tech gun. Aiming it at a lower part of the building across from her, the projectile ejected from the barrel. Pulling along a steel rope and digging the end into the concrete wall, she created a zipline.

After tugging on it to make sure it was secure, Batqueen shook her head and reluctantly offered her arm to Phantom Cat. Of course, he trotted over to her gleefully. Ziplining into the building was as discreet as breaking through the glass window upon entry, which was exactly what happened. Below the two vigilantes, mercenaries frantically pointed their guns upward. The man in the white suit and mask looked behind him to the ceiling, smiling beneath. 

“So, they’ve finally come.” Scarecrow straightened his suit jacket, pulling out from his inside pocket a pistol. “Men, it’s time to welcome our new arrivals.”

The group of armed men scattered to different parts of the building above. Batqueen and Phantom Cat watched from the sides of the third floor window. The building they found themselves in seemed to be an apartment complex, where all of the people seemed to have evacuated when Scarecrow came in. Batqueen and Phantom Cat found themselves in a fairly large bathroom. Dense footsteps could be faintly heard by Makoto from below. She signalled Cat to standby and wait for them to come up.

What seemed suspicious was Scarecrow attacking innocent people that had nothing of value. Judging from the contents of the bathroom, these people were well off but not exactly rich as there was no money or significant items of value found inside. And her computer from the Batcave pulled up no people of interest that lived in this area. There was nothing that pointed to a motive as to why Scarecrow was doing this. The only that’s certain is that Batqueen was going to get to the bottom of this

The footsteps got more audible as she heard the impact of boots on the wooden floors, the sharp click of guns being loaded, and the sound of her own breath. Makoto put her hand on the doorknob, waiting for the right moment. The steps got closer… and closer. Until she heard them stop. Exactly where she wanted them to.

Without any grace, Batqueen pushed the door outward with all her might. Slamming it into the face of an unfortunate mercenary, who dropped their gun upon impact. Leaping out from the bathroom, Makoto grabbed the edge of her cape and swiftly draped it over herself. On cue, two streams of rapid pops rang throughout the apartment. One with the bullets ejecting in quick succession, an assault rifle - M16, American model. The other was more spaced out and packed more mass within each launch but not enough for a shotgun. Possibly a handgun with at most 8 rounds. Her black cape soaked up the impact of the bullets, dropping them like pebbles onto the floor. One stream of bullets ended, Batqueen advanced with three gigantic steps, and turned to face the other mercenary who continued firing. In one motion, Batqueen enveloped the mercenary in her cape and used her free hand to quickly jam her fist into the man’s face with cartilage shattering on impact. Grabbing his hair, Makoto slams the remainder of his nose on her knee. The next stream of gunshots stopped. 

A sharp roundhouse kick dispatched the mercenary, as his head hit the edge of a table next to them. Batqueen pushed her cape back behind her while the second man fumbled desperately to reload his weapon. She smiled with joy. His eyes widened in fear and his hands shook violently. She slowly walked up to the scared man, who dropped his magazine and stumbled backwards. 

Batqueen kneeled in front of him, giving him a deadly glare. “Next time you try to kill me…” She grabbed his rifle and threw it aside, “Buy Japanese.”

Makoto heard a loud thud from behind her, which was Phantom Cat throwing the leftover mercenary onto the ground. He walked up next to Batqueen, smiling mischievously, “Need me to take care of that?”

“Sure, if you can handle it.” Makoto spat bluntly.

Cat let out a short, playful laugh. “Oh, watch me very closely then, Bats.”

\-------------------------------------------

Scarecrow paced back and forth, waiting for word from his mercenaries with only a few remaining and standing on each of his sides. He held back his urge to act and start giving more orders. Brushing the side of his pistol, the disgraced detective began to grow impatient. He wanted to get the truth. He wanted to give everyone the truth. And the truth can only be set free through fear. Fear, the most primal and raw emotion. It dissects people. Breaks them down to their most basic components. A weapon that can be used on anyone Scarecrow saw fit for interrogation.

Scarecrow then heard something metallic hit the floor behind him. His men frantically pointed their guns in all directions, looking for a target. It bounced a few times before settling. He knew exactly what it was, kicking the smoke bomb away from him. “You can’t always play the same tricks, Batqueen!”

He waited for the bomb to go off. But it didn’t. And that was when the ceiling collapsed. Batqueen and Phantom Cat dropped down, both disarming the nearest mercenary before they could get a single shot off. The last one attempted to fire his rifle but a Batarang made its way into his shoulder, sending an electrical pulse through his body. Once the last man fell, Makoto looked around for Scarecrow. 

Then she heard a loud pop aimed in a different direction. Her reflexes were fast, almost inhuman, but she only managed to push Cat just barely out of the way of the bullet’s path. The round almost grazed the side of his face, but damaged part of the gas mask. 

Batqueen caught Phantom Cat before he fell to the floor. Then she heard the shooter’s voice, “It’s finally showtime!”

Cat let out an exasperated gasp as figure appeared from behind him, with a syringe jammed into the back of his shoulder. Batqueen kicked Scarecrow off of him and removed the syringe, seeing that it was completely empty. Cat started to hyperventilate, eyes widened and pupils enlarged. He started to tremble viciously, searching around the room for something. 

“Phantom Cat! Stay with me!”

His eyes honed in on hers, “Bats, please don’t go. Please. I can’t do this alone, not again.” There was pleading in his voice, one that Batqueen had never heard before. 

Makoto reached into her belt for a smaller syringe of her own. She gently pierced Cat’s skin on his arm with the needle, injecting him with an antidote that her sister helped her make. Phantom Cat’s breaths started to slow to a halt and his eyes slowly closed, putting her partner to sleep for now.

Batqueen stood up and walked over to the man she had violently kicked to the nearby wall, who was currently scrambling to reach for his gun. She responded with a batarang thrown precisely at his left palm. Scarecrow let out an agonizing cry before Makoto grabbed his arm and pushed the batarang further into his hand, as well as wedging it into the wall. She reached for his mask and ripped it off his face, revealing the disgraced ace detective Goro Akechi. Makoto sneered at him. He was a weasel, a coward who needed to force fear on others to hide his own.

“What is your game, Scarecrow?” Makoto asked him calmly, masking her anger and disgust for Akechi.

He left out a despicable laugh, “Maybe I just wanted to cause some mayhem? Rile up the streets, hm? I bet that’s not the answer you’re looking for, huh Batqueen?”

Talk of mayhem didn’t fit Scarecrow’s modus operandi. Something was wrong.

But then it suddenly clicked for her. 

Makoto handed Scarecrow a fast right hook, “Talk! Where is the Joker?”

Scarecrow laughed again, in a more maniacal manner. A prolonged and harrowing laughter that fits someone else’s MO. “You want her, don’t you? To finally catch her and throw her into the asylum, huh?”

Batqueen hammered Akechi’s nose with her fist once again. Blood ran down from his nostrils. “Where. Is. The Joker.”

All Scarecrow did was laugh. He laughed as he tasted the blood dripping from his nose. Laughed as Makoto punched him once again. Laughed as Makoto heard the approaching sirens of the police force. “She made me immune to fear. I can’t feel it anymore! Everything is just too funny now!” Akechi spit some blood off to the side. “Big Bang Burger. She said you would understand that.”

And she did. She knew exactly where the Joker was. Batqueen latched onto Scarecrow’s free arm and twisted it before chopping at the elbow. Makoto heard the bone snap, making sure she kept her promise.

Batqueen picked up Phantom Cat and carried him in her arms. She walked away from the unconscious guards and the echoing laughter of Goro Akechi as the police swarmed the building.

\-------------------------------------------

The Joker appeared to be holed up in an abandoned Big Bang Burger restaurant on the outskirts of the city. The streets were empty and all she could hear was the escalating whirling of her motorcycle’s engine as she accelerated. The shine of the street lights reflected on the silver chassis of the bike. 

“Johanna, are there any other people in the restaurant?”

The display in front of her shifted to a 3D model of the decrepit diner. The robotic voice of her AI assistant responded, “Negative, target is alone.”

“Good.”

Upon arrival, she parked the motorcycle just outside before walking in. Makoto tapped the side of her cowl, activating the suits night vision. The door creaked as it opened and the space in front of her was mostly empty, apart from the cashier’s counter and a few leftover tables. The diner was dead silent. Quiet static filled the air, aside from the droplets of water filling a pool below an opening on the roof. A hue of blue moonlight painted the room.

Then she heard footsteps followed by a patronizing, arrogant voice. “10 minutes. You’re getting slower each time.”

Then she stood behind the counter with a sinister and wide smile, “So, may I take your order?” Her lime green hair was messily tied into a side ponytail with a heart shaped hair tie, along with split ends that made it look like the tip of a used paintbrush. The purple coat clashed with her green and blue suit, yet matched with her thin purple gloves. Then her face… white paint that caked the majority of it. A thick coat of black makeup lined the area around her eyes. The red color that covered her lips stretched past the corners of her mouth, matching her terrifying smile.

“You can’t run from this one, Joker.”

She strutted herself away from the counter with her cane, “Oh Batsy, can’t I just see my favorite bat themed vigilante? You come off as so brooding and serious. You need to smile!”

Batqueen raised her fists in defense, ready to fight.

“Direct and no foreplay? Oh, you must have men lining up for you.”

Hands still raised, she growled in response.

“All business? How booooring. Why don’t we do something fun? I can give you a makeover! I’ll make you look SOOOOOO pretty!”

Makoto heard rope and metal creak before launching herself to the right. Where Makoto stood was now an old bucket dripping into a pool of multi colored acid. The liquid ate into the floor and sizzled as she scanned the room, noticing the Joker had disappeared. 

She jumped back up. The diner was completely empty. The only sound she heard was the sizzling of part of her cowl, which seemed to have caused her night vision to deactivate. Makoto was in the complete dark now. Then that voice rang through the restaurant again. A voice with the hint of grace and elegance behind it, but that spoke words poisoned by a twisted insanity.

“OHHHHH I’ll never get tired of this!” Rapid footsteps walking towards her, getting louder and louder. Suddenly, the wall behind her collapsed, followed by a sharp pain in her shoulder as she felt a small axe stab into her flesh. Makoto let out a grunt of pain but clenched her teeth together, biding the pain. She turned behind her and was greeted only by the opening in the wall. The Joker had once again vanished.

The dank, somber atmosphere of the diner lingered. Batqueen could hear the footsteps of the Joker coming from the north side of the diner. However, she heard laughter in another direction… from the west side yet more footsteps are still heard further north. One of the sounds started to get louder and closer. Makoto’s brain wanted to immediately command her into fight mode, but her instincts told her to wait. She listened to the latter. 

The footsteps from the north got closer and then nothing. Only a phone attached to some toy cars emerged from the shadows, into the moonlight. The phone was playing a recording of footsteps. Then Makoto heard real footsteps running. This time, her brain and instincts were in sync. Batqueen turned and grabbed the Joker's axe, pulling her forward and headbutting Joker’s face. The Joker let go of her weapon and fell back. She started to laugh, almost uncontrollably, “Bats! Axes are dangerous! Very DANGEROUS!”

Makoto threw the axe away but it detonated the moment her hand let it go. The shockwave of the explosion slammed her against a nearby wall, tossing her aside like a ragdoll. Her head was spinning, like her brain was beginning to reboot. Pieces of her suit were burnt off from the explosion. She heard the Joker approach and a knife being brandished. She felt another sharp pain on her torso as the Joker kicked her, each time the knife on the tip of her shoe digging deeper into her skin. The blood loss was taking its toll. The room started to get darker. She couldn’t fall unconscious now. Not after being so close.

Like reaching into a void, Batqueen managed to grab Joker’s boot and pushed her back. From the large thud, Makoto assumed that knocked her on her ass. 

She stumbled to get up, carelessly trying to grip onto the wall next to her in an attempt to keep balance. Her vision grew blurry but Makoto managed to stand up straight. The Joker scrambled to get back up like a fish out of water. Batqueen picked her up by the collar then decked her with a swift punch across the jaw. After one jab to the ribs and another headbutt, the Joker fell to the ground. This time staying down.

The psychopath started to cackle and laugh, to the point where she coughed up some blood. Batqueen covered her side with her hand while she stood over the fallen Joker. “You try so hard to be this... paragon of justice! This dark vigilante of the night. An icon to the women of Tokyo! And here I am!” The Joker propped herself up against the counter, “The antithesis to the great Batqueen. Destined to fight for the rest of our-”

The impact of Batqueen’s boot echoed throughout the diner. “Shut up.”

\-------------------------------------------

The wind had calmed and the scene below has been handled by the police. Makoto had distributed copies of the Scarecrow antidote to the police prior to returning back to the scene. Tokyo has calmed down since Makoto last hopped onto the rooftop. After administering the antidote, she had left Phantom Cat in one of the abandoned rooms with a message from her so he doesn’t freak out too much but knowing him, that might make him panic even more. She’s worried the antidote may not have taken full effect before he wakes up.

Entranced in thought, Makoto felt something hit her cowl lightly, which turned out to be a paper airplane made from the message she left for Cat. She looked up to find Phantom Cat, arms crossed and leaning against the doorway to the rooftop. “It was kind of cute that you left a letter for me,” Cat smiled devilishly.

Makoto cleared her throat and turned around, “I didn’t want you to panic upon waking up from the antidote to Scarecrow’s toxin.” 

He chuckled, “You try so hard to hide that you actually care, don’t you Batqueen?”

She felt unfamiliar with the feeling of embarrassment that warmed her face since she has always been able to stay in control of her emotions. “Well- It’s not that. I just happen to want my partner to be in the best condition, especially after the toxin taking its effect and I wasn’t even sure that the cure would work probably but I couldn’t leave you there and-”

“Bats!” Makoto snapped out of her stream of worry and faced Cat, who couldn’t help but smile at her mental fumbling. “Thank you for protecting me. I know I’ve been more than a pain in the ass. Stealing stuff and now the whole partners in justice thing. But I am… glad you took a chance on me.”

She was surprised by Phantom Cat opening up to her. Most of the time, he spent his time flirting with her. “Oh! It is nothing. I just saw potential in you.”

He laughed again, to Makoto’s confusion and slight frustration. “Well, since we are partners, I think it’s best that you know who you’re working with.” Cat took off his mask to reveal his face and dark grey eyes.

Makoto smirked at Cat, who raised his brow. “The infamous burglar and thief of Shibuya... is the coffee barista, Ren Amamiya.”

Ren had a playful smile on his face, “I wondered if you already knew.”

“I had my guesses.”

He put his arms on his hips and walked forward to the masked vigilante, “Well, I have a guess of my own as well. How does the famous masked crusader of Tokyo afford such a sleek black and all the gadgets she uses? A powerful and rich woman.” Ren seemed to stop for a moment and pondered, “My guess is Sae Niijima.”

Makoto tried to hold in her delight but she let out a loud laugh.

“Come on, I can’t be that off!”

Makoto reached up to the sides of her cowl, pressing buttons on the side. The cowl responded with a click and came loose, letting her pull it off and revealing her short brown hair.

Ren laughed to himself, “I’ll be honest. I would have been disappointed if it was your sister.”

Now Makoto walked forward to him, throwing the cowl off to the side. “You prefered me?”

Ren smiled and slowly placed his hands on Makoto’s sides, expecting some kind of rejection from her upon his touch. “I always did like you better… but a part of me didn’t expect it’d be you.”

Makoto looked up to him, “And why is that?”

“While you are very cute, you’re also strong, brilliant, and take charge. You’re determined to make the world right… to bring it to justice. Also… you’re the only person who’s taken a chance on me.”

She placed her hands on his, following his arms up to rest them on Ren’s shoulders. “You just want to be better. To prove to the world what you’ve already proven to me. That you are more than your past actions. That you are a good person.”

“You seem to just see right through me, don’t you?” 

“Only because you let me.”

Makoto stared into his grey eyes, unable to think about how to proceed while feeling the heat in her cheeks grow hotter. Ren seemed to notice but just smiled “Bats, I never expected you to look so embarasse-”

Following the instinct of her heart, Makoto pulled him in close. She thought to herself that the surprise on his face was more than satisfactory when she kissed him. The city didn’t matter. The villains didn’t matter. Her responsibilities didn’t matter. Just for this one moment atop this tower, with the night stars shining and the murmur of the city, all that matter was this brief time of peace and intimacy with them.

\-------------------------------------------

Ren was surprised to wake up first in the morning only to find Makoto passed out with a laptop hanging from the side of the floor. Luckily, he had just enough time to get up and catch it before the computer fell off the side of the bed. Finding himself on her side of the bed, she watched how peaceful Makoto’s face was. Ren remembered that she sometimes woke up to nightmares when the Phantom Thieves were still active. Haunted by the consequences of the job and how they might bounce back catastrophically to Sae. But it brought Ren relief to see her so sound and fast asleep. Makoto more than deserved this peace.

“I will… catch you… Joker…”

He tilted his head, wondering what she was dreaming about. Ren decided not to ponder on it for too long and went to prepare some breakfast for both of them. Not before giving her a kiss on the forehead.

_I wonder if it has anything to do with the movies from last night._

**Author's Note:**

> Happy Day 2 of ShuMako Week!
> 
> I'm really happy that I could finally participate in a ShuMako week. I absolutely adore this ship and I've been meaning to write something for these two dorks. This idea for a story got sparked from a conversation with some friends and its been festering in my mind for quite a while. 
> 
> Anyways, I hope you enjoyed the story! Feel free to comment any thoughts or criticisms you may have!


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